Shadow's Embrace
by Deidara97
Summary: Another clandestine night in the cavernous place Sasuke once called home. Sasuke accepts the circumstances of his new life, but still finds himself searching for past comforts. SasukeXJuugo. Set during the Naruto Gaiden series.


_I've missed this so much._ Sasuke inhaled softly through his nostrils, letting the familiar smell intoxicate him. He nestled his head into the muscular shoulder, and was greeted by large fingers combing through his dark hair.

"Your hair is so much longer." The gravelly voice hardly exceeded a whisper and Sasuke felt soft lips brush against his forehead. Sasuke used what little remained of his strength to trace the familiar scars on Jugo's abdomen with his index finger.

"You say that like you don't approve." Jugo felt a slight tickle as his lover's eyelashes brushed against his chest. He made another pass through the onyx locks.

"I approve." His hand shifted to rest on Sasuke's shoulder and he nuzzled his nose into Sasuke's hair. He cherished the familiar smell and wished the moment would last forever.

"Hn." Sasuke could no longer retain a smile and wondered how long it had been. _This is right._

In the absence of their voices, the sounds of crickets and owls could be heard from above ground. Sasuke recalled the first time he ever openly accepted Jugo without any guilt in his conscience one summer many years ago… That was before the war, before everything changed.

The thoughts brought him back to all of the arguments the two would have when they were still teammates and how their relationship was constantly shifting back and forth between guilt and desire. Every night would end in either a maelstrom of rage or passion. Those heated decisions seemed so crucial then, as if two people's fickle hearts and miscommunications would be the end of the world. But Sasuke would do anything to go back to that time—a time when there was still hope that they could be happy.

As if he had read Sasuke's mind, Jugo interrupted.

"Did everything end up okay with Sakura and Salada?" He paused before continuing. "Things seemed a little tense the last time everyone showed up here at the hideout. I heard Suigetsu ended up making things even worse with that botched DNA test…"

"Yeah, by the time we got back to the village, everything seemed okay. But I didn't stick around long to see much else..." Sasuke's smile had long since faded. Rather than caress Jugo's immaculate figure, Sasuke's hand rested in a crumpled fist that signaled defeat.

Jugo sensed the pain and began stroking Sasuke's toned shoulder gently. The two laid in silence for a long time, listening to the crickets' harmonies and each other's heartbeat.

Things were not as passionate as they used to be. Rather than fight for their happiness, they quietly accepted their clandestine love, meeting only on rare occasions in the underground hideout. It was easy enough for Sasuke to sneak in without Suigetsu or Orochimaru noticing.

"I'm sorry, Jugo." Sasuke's words startled the man, making his hand stop its cathartic rhythm for a moment.

"What do you have to be sorry for?"

"I broke my promise… I can't be your cage anymore." Sasuke's eyes were closed and his head was pressed even tighter against the broad shoulder.

"Oh, that." Jugo's voice was light, almost as if he were laughing. "That's probably for the best." Sasuke cocked his head inquisitively. "I was dependent on you before… But now we're equal." He was smiling as the words came out. "It was your connection to Kimimaro that attracted me to you, but the man I fell in love with was Sasuke." His large hand caressed Sasuke's cheek and tilted his chin upwards so that their eyes met. Sasuke relaxed and smiled. He genuinely wanted this gentle person to stop living in fear of himself.

"If things don't work out here with Orochimaru… you should come on the road with me during my missions… I could use the company…"

"Hm?" Jugo was bemused by the man's blunt request. "I don't know how your superiors would feel about you tagging along with an ex-criminal to carry out your missions. It might breed suspicion."

"The whole situation is suspicious. It's not like I mind the work, but by keeping me out here on missions all the time, it's as if they're trying to forget about my existence. I can't say I blame them, but…" Sasuke's thoughts trailed and Jugo waited a minute or so before pressing further.

"But?"

"It just doesn't sit right… because this is the same thing that happened to my clan right before the _incident.._. The village pushed them farther and farther away. I know this is different, but I can't help but feel that history is just going to keep repeating itself…" Jugo decided not to bring up Sasuke's interesting choice of pronouns. When referring to his clan, why use the word 'them?' why not 'us?' But, knowing how defensive Sasuke gets with family matters, he thought it might be best to overlook it for the time being.

"Even if history _is_ repeating itself, what would you do?"

"Hell if I know…" Sasuke shook his head in forfeit. "Sometimes I wish I could check out of the Shinobi world and start over."

"You couldn't do it."

Sasuke lifted his head slightly in order to give a sharp glare at the other.

"It would be too boring. I don't think you'd last a month living the life of a civilian." Sasuke thought briefly about what the man had said and came to the conclusion that he was right.

"What about you? Do you plan on staying here forever?" His eyes shifted upwards to meet Jugo's.

"I have to… unless Orochimaru finds some way to cure my rampages. But then I would be indebted to him, so…"

"My offer still stands."

"Do you hate your family that much? That you'd be willing to risk them finding out the truth?" His tone was jovial, but the content hit Sasuke pretty hard.

"…You're right. I couldn't risk it…" Jugo's tone remained light.

"…I'm happy this way. I still get to see you. And like I said, we're equals, not teammates."

"… Nh... I just wish I didn't have this gnawing guilt." Sasuke's gaze had fallen and he was staring off in the distance.

"You had that even before you were married."

"Yeah, but it's different now."

"Would it make you feel better if we stopped seeing each other?"

Sasuke's eyes fell for a moment before he shoved his hand into Jugo's ribs in a playfully aggressive manner. He knew the answer to that question was yes. But no matter how many times he thought of a life without this man, his decision never changed.

Jugo pulled Sasuke's body back to its proper place against his side and stroked the back of his head gently until the smaller man's breathing had evened out to a shallow rhythm.

 ***AN** Thank you guys for reading! I know it's a weird pairing... But I hope you enjoyed it! Please feel free to leave comments and criticisms!


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